Polish aid

In 2018, the grant equivalent of Poland’s Official Development Assistance (ODA) was PLN 2.766 billion. Under multilateral cooperation, PLN 1.882 billion was spent, which accounted for 68% of all funds. Poland allocated PLN 884 million (32%) for bilateral assistance. Development cooperation funds made up 0.14% of Poland’s gross national income (the ODA/GNI ratio).

Geographic and thematic priorities

In 2018, Polish development cooperation was based on the Multiannual Development Cooperation Programme 2016-2020, which defines its geographic and thematic priorities.

Geographical areas were divided into two groups. The first one covers four Eastern Partnership countries: Belarus, Georgia, Moldova, and Ukraine, where Polish aid focuses on supporting good governance, human capital, entrepreneurship and the private sector, as well as agriculture and rural development.

The second group covers selected countries in Africa, Asia, and the Middle East. It includes eight countries: Ethiopia, Kenya, Lebanon, Myanmar, Palestine, Senegal, Tanzania, and Uganda, most of them characterized by a high level of poverty. In these countries, assistance is directed at human capital, environmental protection, entrepreneurship and the private sector, and agriculture and rural development.

Apart from the above-mentioned priority countries, Poland also supports other countries which are included in the list of developing countries in line with OECD DAC guidelines (DAC List of ODA Recipients).

Bilateral ODA

In 2018, key recipients of Polish bilateral assistance were: Ukraine, Myanmar, Belarus, Tanzania, Turkey, Kenya, Lebanon, Syria, Iraq, Jordan, Georgia, and Moldova (details below).

Table 1. List of largest recipients of Polish ODA in 2018

Item	Recipient of Polish ODA	PLN m
1.	Ukraine	242.79
2.	Myanmar	181.23
3.	Belarus	123.34
4.	Tanzania	76.58
5.	Turkey*	57.25
6.	Kenya	19.49
7.	Lebanon	18.53
8.	Syria	13.13
9.	Iraq	12.53
10.	Jordan	10.46
11.	Georgia	8.58
12.	Moldova	8.32

*This item includes a contribution to the EU Facility for Refugees in Turkey, of PLN 53.66 million

Poland aid targeted European countries, followed by those from Asia, Africa, and the Middle East. It largely comprised tied aid loans chiefly for countries in Asia and Africa. The breakdown of bilateral cooperation by income groups in recipient countries is definitely more balanced. However, it is the lower middle income countries that have the largest share in Polish ODA – 38%.

Chart 1. Polish bilateral official development assistance in 2018 by regions, in PLN m

*Since 2018, the grant equivalent of disbursed loans (calculated on the basis of agreement terms and conditions and inclusive of risk associated with a given income group of a recipient country) has been the leading measure for calculating ODA as part of loan agreements, replacing the net value (disbursements minus repayments in a given year).

Chart 2. Polish bilateral official development assistance in 2018 by income groups of recipient countries

In 2018, the largest share of bilateral cooperation was earmarked for scholarships and the costs of education – nearly PLN 325 m; followed by loan agreements, with a total of approx. PLN 273 m of the grant equivalent, and other project activities with the value of PLN 163 m. Earmarked contributions through international institutions and assistance funds totalled PLN 86 m. Poland’s costs of hosting refugees amounted to over PLN 22.5 m.

Chart 3. Polish bilateral official development assistance in 2018 by type

In 2018, Poland provided PLN 128.6 m for bilateral humanitarian aid, most of which was utilised for Turkey, Lebanon, Syria, Iraq, Jordan, and Ukraine.

Multilateral ODA

According to OECD DAC guidelines, multilateral development assistance is understood as contributions to general budgets of international organisations entered in the list approved by OECD DAC members (i.e. Annex 2. List of ODA-eligible international organisations).

In 2018, the largest part of Polish multilateral development assistance traditionally contributed to European Union funds allocated to external development assistance. In 2018, Polish participation in these funds reached PLN 1.672 billion. It was composed of part of the EU budget contribution allocated to development goals (PLN 1.295 billion[1]) and a contribution (PLN 377 m[2]) to the European Development Fund (EDF), which is the EU’s key non-budgetary instrument to finance cooperation with African, Caribbean and Pacific (ACP) countries and Overseas Countries and Territories (OCTs).

Poland earmarked PLN 81.5 million for entities working within the United Nations System. A significant amount, PLN 102 million, corresponded to a contribution to the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB) and the Council of Europe (PLN 12.7 million).

Chart 4. Channels of multilateral ODA distribution in 2018

 

 [1] Poland makes one contribution to the EU budget without differentiating into specific programmes, funds, or instruments. Polish participation in the European Union’s official development assistance is calculated in the following way: knowing the size of the EU budget and the value of Polish contribution it is possible to express the latter as a percentage of the former. Assuming that Poland’s participation in EU official development assistance is the same as its participation in all of the EU budget, it can be calculated based on data from the EU budget execution. Estimated data from budget execution are updated according to the European Commission’s successive reports, so they can be subject to substantive changes.

[2] The value of the Member States’ contributions to the European Development Fund is defined each time by the European Commission based on its estimate of financial needs connected with actions envisaged under a given EDF. Unused funding from a given EDF is not reimbursed to the payers. Instead, it is transferred to the next EDF.